Lampholder for elongated tubular lamps



Oct. 9, l95l L. BOLTUCH 2,570,514

LAMPHOLDER FOR ELONGATED TUBULAR LAMPS Filed Aug. 21, 1950 l ill/P1111 JNVENTOR.

B 1e'02z302$ u@ Patented Oct. 9, 1951 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFlCE LAMPHOLDER FOZ I JZJ Z SGATED TUBULAR I i LAMPS Leon Boltuch, Bronx, N. Y.

Application August 21, 1950, Serial No. 180,629

2 Claims.

The present invention relates generally to fluorescent tube lighting fixtures and is more particularly directed to the lampholders carried by the fixture and which are designed to receive the ends of the discharge tubes, support them in the fixture and provide electric contacts for their terminals.

The main object of the present invention is generally to facilitate the assembly or the mounting of the lampholder on the fixture, and to provide a structure in which the assembly wil remain fixed inordinary use. The present invention further aims to provide the fixture manufacturer with lampholders which have, as an integral part thereof, a maleelement which may be readily inserted into a cooperating female element in the fixture for securing the lampholder in position.

A further object of the invention is to provide the lampholder with a bowed metal leaf spring or similar device which may enter a suitable opening or other receptacle in a lamp fixtureand be captured therein andthereby secure the lampholder firmly in the desired position.

Another object of the invention is to secure or amx the spring or other resilient element to the lampholder without the employment of any fastening devices other than are already parts of the lampholder as now commonly manufactured.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a fluorescent light fixture with double walled end walls, the inner of the double walls having asuitable opening to receive the spring on the lamp holder and secure the lamp holder firmly in position.

In the accompanying drawing:

Fig. 1 illustrates the lamp fixture embodying the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a face view of the reflector which carries the lampholders and fluorescent tube;

Fig. 3 is a side view showing the mounting of the lampholders on the reflector;

Fig. 4 is a rear view of the lampholder;

Fig. 5 is a face view of the end wall of the reflector;

Fig. 6 is a sectional view taken on line 66 in Fig. 4;

Fig. 7 is a sectional view taken on line l'l.

The lampholder 10 may be of any desired construction, and the present invention is concerned with the manner in which the lampholder may be attached or mounted on a fixture, and not with the construction of the lampholder per se. Such lampholders carry strip conductors disposed withrial is employed for covering the passages and recesses in which the receptacle contact are mounted. The plate i2 is customarily anchored.

in position by the pin l3. In the lampholder embodying the present invention the bowed spring 14 is anchored in position immediately against the exposed face of the cover plate l2 by means of the pin I3. While this is the preferred manner of mounting the spring I l, it will be understood that the'present invention is not limited to this specific manner of mounting the spring I4 and that the same may be mounted and anchored on the lampholder II! in any suitable manner, one essential feature of the invention residing in affixing and securing the double mounted spring M to the lampholder I0 so that the same may be securely fixed on the, fixture without the use of screws or bolts or nuts and merely by a thrust of the spring M into a suitable aperture or opening in the Wall of the fixture.

For the purposes above described, the spring M is made of resilient steel or the like and comprises a flat base l5 with a prong [5 at each end thereof curved in the manner shown toward each other. Each of the prongs I5 is preferably provided with a cut-out portion it in order to increase the resilience of the prong.

The lamp fixture generally indicated by the reference character 20, and which may be of any type, the type shownherein being merely illustrative, is provided with a suitable opening or cut-out portion 22 for receiving and firmly anchoring the Spring l4 and the lampholder Hi. In the preferred form of the invention, the end structures of the fixture each include preferably two parallel spaced walls 24 and 26. The inner wall 24 is provided with a cut-out portion 22 shown in Figure 5. The ends 28 of the cut-out portion are shaped as shown so that when the lampholder and its spring I4 is forced into this opening, the edges 28 firmly engage the bases of the prongs l8 and thus hold the lampholder and lamp securely in position. As the lampholder with its spring is forced into the opening 22, one or both of the prongs I6 yield, and when the face of the lampholder abuts the face of the wall 24, the prongs l6 expand again and press firmly against the edges 28 of the opening 22. If desired, the edges 28 may be cut away at the corners as shown at 30. The side edges of the opening 22 are preferably cut away as shown at 32 in order to provide for the passage of the cord or wires 34 into the space between the two walls 24 and 26, although, if desired, the cord or wires may be led along the exposed face of the wall 24 into the passage or conduit 34.

In the processing or manufacturing of the present invention, the lampholder I0, together with its cover plate l2 and the mounting spring [4, are manufactured and secured together to constitute a unit by the pin I3 and is sold and delivered to the appliance or fixture manufacturer as a unit, together with the cord 34. The appliance or fixture manufacturer, in assembling the fixture, merely presses the lampholder I into the opening 22 of the fixture.

The present invention is applicable to a large variety of lamp fixtures which are designed to employ discharge tubes and is also applicable to the several types of lampholders or lamp receptacles commonly in use.

The bowed spring [4 is preferably made of relatively heavy spring steel, with the consequence that its base plate [5 is considerably more rigid and less yielding than the prongs l6, which are rendered more resiilent by the cut-out portion 18, which form a pair of parallel resilient arms which are directed outwardly and away from the ends of the base I5. The distance between the edges 28 of the receptacle 22 is substantially the same as the length of the base l5. By the aid of this construction the lampholder is held securely in position with its peripheral portion held in full and firm engagement with the wall 24 of the fixture.

It will be understood that the present invention may be embodied in structures that depart in some respects from the specific form shown here, it being understood that this form is merely illustrative of the invention, which is defined by the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A fluorescent discharge tube lighting fixture comprising a canopy having a cut-out portion, a lamp holder having a front face having at least one lamp receiving passage and a rear face having a recess and depressions communicating with the recess and receiving conducting elements, an insulating plate in the recess and covering the depressions, a bracket disposed against the plate, and means securing the bracket and plate to the lampholder, the bracket having a pair of resilient I metal prongs entering said cut-out portion, each of said prongs being bowed outwardly beyond the recess and the edge of the cut-out portion entering the space between the bowed portion and the holder.

2. A lampholder for tubular discharge lamps comprising a body of insulating material having a front face having at least one lamp receiving passage and a rear face having a recess and depressions communicating with the recess and receiving conducting elements, an insulating plate in the recess and covering the depressions, a bracket disposed against the plate, and means securing the bracket and plate to the body, the bracket having a pair of resilient metal prongs bowed outwardly beyond the recess.

LEON BOLTUCH.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Date Hall Dec. 13, 1949 

